Exploration of the Discrepancy Between Sexes in Acute Myelogenous Leukemia
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- Author:
- Peduzzi, Vanessa
- Area of Honors:
- Immunology and Infectious Disease
- Degree:
- Bachelor of Science
- Document Type:
- Thesis
- Thesis Supervisors:
- Kumble Sandeep Prabhu, Thesis Supervisor
Pamela Hankey Giblin, Thesis Honors Advisor - Keywords:
- AML
Acute Myelogenous Leukemia
Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Hematological Disorders
Leukemia - Abstract:
- Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a hematological disorder in which patients exhibit elevated levels of immature white blood cells. As various mutations and chromosomal translocations are associated with AML, it is a highly heterogeneous disease with limited treatment options available. Recent studies of Gpr44 (a G-protein coupled receptor of prostaglandin D2 and its metabolites), which is thought to play a role in AML, have uncovered an expected phenomenon: female mice appear to have improved survival rates and lesser disease burden than their male counterparts. To confirm that there is a sex bias in murine AML and investigate potential mechanisms for this difference, multiple secondary AML transplant survival studies were performed to see how various parameters affect disease burden and outcome in mice. After establishing that there is an AML sex bias in mice, the roles of dietary selenium levels and recipient mouse estrogen levels were evaluated. It was found that neither of these factors fully explains the advantage that female mice exhibit in AML. Finally, studies of donor AML cells revealed that AML cells derived from the bone marrow of primary infected female mice produce much more aggressive disease in recipients than AML cells from male mice. These findings not only confirm that a murine model is appropriate for studying this phenomenon, but also provide a foundation for future studies to uncover the mechanism behind the sex bias and identify targets for future AML therapeutics.
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